Until Sunday, November 15, we offer a series of reports dedicated to the Senegambia Bridge, which has changed the lives of Gambians and Senegalese for a year. After decades of waiting, the Senegalese bridge was open to individuals in January 2019. Then to trucks in July. This bridge built in the Gambia across the river is intended to open the Casamance region of southern Senegal. And to increase trade throughout the sub-region. For truck drivers who used to cross the Gambia, it is their professional life that has changed.
Mosquitoes, heat, dust and boredom left their mark on truck drivers being forced to cross Farafenni. Gory Ndour and Moctar Dia are waiting to cross the Senegalese border. They have not forgotten the ferry: “It was still difficult, we could stay for two or three weeks. But with the bridge now it is good.”
The small money earned to transport the goods was spent during the weeks waiting for the ferry, explains Moctar Dia: “The time left parked, you will spend a lot to eat and you send the rest to your family.”
The goods can also be damaged with wasted time. Today the traffic is flowing.
This $ 90 million bridge funded by the African Development Bank aims to improve the Nouakchott-Dakar-Lagos road corridor. On a smaller scale, this bridge is an opportunity to improve regional trade, says Yahya Jobe, Secretary General of the Farafenni Transport Association: “Traffic has increased significantly. Take a walk around the city and you will see many trucks and cars passing through. Trade has also seen an upswing in the region. When you place an order in Banjul, you will receive your package within a few hours. From Senegal, the package can be delivered from one side of the river to the other. “
The only downside, a price that is considered too expensive and calculated on the weight of the truck. But the price is reasonable and the money raised benefits everyone, wants to convince Mod Ceesay, Permanent Secretary of the Gambia’s Ministry of Transport: “It has nothing to do with what could have been a commercial price if the bridge had been built under a public-private partnership. would like to add that the bridge requires fees of about 10 million dollars per year for revenues of less than 3 million in 2019. If anyone thinks we are asking for too much money … he has not understood anything. “
Users do not realize that the Late Gambian bridge is only part of the Transgambia project, reports Mod Ceesay. A road corridor that is still under construction that goes beyond the river’s only crossing and that costs millions of dollars.
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